The present invention is directed to bicycles and, more particularly, to various features of a bicycle input force processing apparatus.
Some bicycle components have sensors attached to them to measure various operating characteristics of the component. For example, transmission shift control devices may have position sensors attached to the operating cable winding mechanism in order to sense the current operating position of the operating cable winding member. The position of the operating cable winding member provides information about the current gear ratio of the bicycle transmission, and that information may be communicated to the rider through a display. In another example, a magnet may be mounted to one of the spokes of the bicycle wheel, and a sensor such as a reed switch may be mounted to the bicycle frame so that the magnet passes by the sensor upon every revolution of the wheel. As a result, the sensor produces an electrical pulse every time the magnet passes by the sensor, and the time between successive pulses may be used to determine the speed of the bicycle. In yet another example, a force sensor such as a strain gauge may be mounted to the surface of a component such as a pedal crank or a wheel hub in order to measure torque being applied to the component. The information from the sensor then may be used to calculate the effort exerted by the rider. In all cases, power must be supplied to the electrical components, and such power ordinarily is provided by a battery.